Skidmore College

The principal mission of Skidmore College is the education of predominantly full-time undergraduates, a diverse population of talented students who are eager to engage actively in the learning process. The college seeks to prepare liberally educated graduates to continue their quest for knowledge and to make the choices required of informed, responsible citizens. Skidmore faculty and staff create a challenging yet supportive environment that cultivates students' intellectual and personal excellence, encouraging them to expand their expectations of themselves while they enrich their academic understanding.

Skidmore is a highly selective liberal arts college with a reputation for its creative approaches to just about everything. With its relatively small size and student-faculty ratio, the College is a close-knit academic community. Skidmore is known for its faculty of teacher-scholars devoted to the instruction and mentoring of undergraduates—approximately 2,400 talented men and women from some 47 states and 46 countries.

A great education is all about putting academic theory and creative expression into practice. That’s what our founder, Lucy Skidmore Scribner, believed. Skidmore’s not an ivory tower. Never has been. Never will be. It’s a place where faculty and students work together, then figure out how to use what they’ve learned to make a difference in the world. This practical focus often leads to cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches, where students carry multiple majors, student-faculty research is common, and internships and community service are standard. It also leads to interesting and unusual combinations of activities, frequently woven into an intellectual passion.

There is no Greek life at Skidmore—except of course in Classics courses. And our students think that’s great because frats and sororities don’t get in the way here. Instead, you can choose from nearly 100 student clubs and organizations, ranging from the Model European Union to the Asian Cultural Association to the Environmental Action Club to SkidTV to snowboarding to anything you want to start up. It’s a way to add value to academics, and develop your leadership skills. It’s fun and gets you engaged with the community. Most importantly, it could well open doors to your professional future.

A ten-minute walk from Skidmore puts you in the heart of a downtown brimming with galleries, clubs, shops (funky and major retail), coffeehouses, bistros, and great restaurants. Legendary folk club Caffè Lena, where Don McLean wrote “American Pie” and Bob Dylan performed, is a student favorite. So is Esperantos, co-founded by a Skidmore sociology prof.

Good location? Boston, New York City, and Montreal are no more than a three-hour car ride from campus. And the Adirondacks, Berkshires, and the Green Mountains, in easy striking distance, provide opportunities for rock- and mountain-climbing, white-water rafting, hiking, kayaking, downhill skiing, and mountain biking.

There’s real history here, too: famed mineral waters, a Revolutionary War battlefield, and the nation’s oldest and most beautiful thoroughbred race track. Arts? Culture? The Saratoga Performing Arts Center is summer home to the New York City Ballet, Philadelphia Orchestra, and a performing venue for top rock and jazz musicians.

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